A Golden Age
by StZen
Summary: AU KaRe. Rei is offered the unrefusable opportunity to work in the Queen's court for the princess. During his time there, Rei learns a secret his best friend has been keeping from him. Thrilling times are ahead, but there's a twist to this fairy tale...


_Summary:_ Tired with the luxurious, yet restless lifestyle Rei's been forced to live in, he finds himself presented with the opportunity to start again, as a well-respected servant in the Queen's court, working for the princess. Even his best friend has been invited along. This could be what Rei's always wanted. But, there's a twist…

_(A/N): _So this is the AU I've been meaning to start for a while now. I loved this idea when it occurred to me and my opinion hasn't changed much. It's basically the result of me reading too many Philippa Gregory books :P. It's gone through so much development in the past couple of months it's unbelievable, since I thought of the idea I've just been planning it. And guess what, it's _still_ being developed; I don't think I'll even stop until it's all written! There's currently a record breaking 9 plots running throughout the story.

This fic has a total of 32 chapters as it stands. Think I can do it, people? Well, I don't :P but we'll see how it goes. I'll pick this up again when I reach the intermission of _Do Svidanya_ and put that story on haitus for a while.

Oh yeah, this is pretty important. Keep in mind that, though this story is set in Japan, it's clearly a fictional tale conjured up by my fairytale imagination. In fact, you may as well forget it's in Japan. It's the typical monarchy, palace type AU except in this one they didn't randomly travel back in time. I figured that would require research of some kind, so I opted to do it this way; completely make it up and avoid any research at all. So, it's set in modern day…they're just very traditional there. But for the first chapter you don't really need to worry about that.

Keep in mind it's not supposed to be a humour fic. I'm not _trying_ to be funny, so I don't want any flames for lack of comedy. It's light-hearted, yes, but basically a mixture of genres.

Just to clear this up, at the beginning of the story Rei is fifteen and Kai is sixteen. By the time this fic ends, Rei will be eighteen and Kai nineteen (and I will probably be thirty!) It's also all in Rei's POV. I will be using the names from the Japanese version, just for fun :P (except Voltaire- it took much deliberation but I decided to keep his name as Voltaire instead of Souichiro).

Warnings: Yaoi/Shounen ai, OCs (they're all pretty minor, though important), characters quite OOC (I did my best, but honestly it's a yaoi AU, of course they'll be OOC!), some rather un-realistic aspects (but then again, this is fanfiction)…for now that's all I got.

Disclaimer: I don't own beyblade or any of the recognisable characters. However, all OC's are mine and would require permission from me to use them. I also disclaim using 'oOo' to divide the paragraphs. I saw it used by someone else and thought it looked pretty :P

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_A Golden Age_

_By StZen_

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From about the age of four I always knew I was from royalty. In fact, perhaps I knew before I was four, but I can't remember that far back. My mother drilled our long family history into my brain at a young age, telling me that one day it will be important to know our heritage. Funny, I never really believed her when she told me that our distant and vague sovereignty would benefit me one day. I just used to sit for hours upon hours and listen to the history lessons she would give me. She taught me everything about my family and the current royal family and the bizarre way we are linked.

I suppose that's the real reason she had me sent out to Japan, other than receiving a proper education in a more prosperous environment than our beloved village in China. Our wealth of course guaranteed me the best schooling money could buy, which is pretty superb considering my intelligence. Having a mysterious link to the country rulers (which I'm not about to question because it would lead to another lecture, but let me assure you it's a very unusual connection that will probably fade in a couple of generations) she managed to convince the ex-wife of an extremely wealthy senator to accept me as a foster child in her home. So, for the last four years I've been living under the roof (a very large roof) of a wealthy foster mother and attending one of the most superior private schools around. And quite honestly, this is what I expected of my life for the next few years.

Imagine our disbelief when my mother called up my foster mother yesterday from the nearest town to our village and told her that the very next afternoon we were to be expecting a visitor. One of the Queen's personal advisors had sent her a hand-written letter informing her that the palace was short of service, and that her niece, the princess Arika would be soon taking the throne and more staff was needed. The letter told my mother to inform her child that they knew the address and the princess Arika would be sent over herself to present a personal invitation. I don't think either of us could describe our surprise.

Arika, the princess, is expected at our house this very afternoon. She is travelling by car all the way from the palace just to present a personal invitation. Surprise indeed, that palace is _miles_ away!

So presently my foster mother is scampering about like a headless chicken trying to make sure everything is perfect. She's being doing this since yesterday, I don't even think she slept last night. Mind you, I didn't sleep much either. I know I shouldn't complain and frankly I really don't have a choice in the matter, but I'm not sure I really _want_ to be sent to work at the Queen's court. But I know there's certainly no room for discussion seeing as the princess will be here in only a short while. Since yesterday I've been fidgeting while she rushes around trying to sort everything though we have people to do that for us, and the house is spotless enough as it is! She just doesn't quite know what to do with herself, and of course wants everything to be perfect.

So it's understandable that she wasn't best pleased when Kai showed up on our doorstep, for no apparent reason, an hour before the princess was due here.

Before he had a chance to say hello she'd ordered me to usher him upstairs and change into something presentable. Seeing as he's here perhaps he could help me keep my nerves at bay.

I met Kai in school and I think it's fair to say he's the best friend I could have asked for. Well, a lot of people say he's a complete jerk but I know he's not really. On the contrary, he can be really nice when he wants to...perhaps 'nice' is too strong-a word. He originally grew up in Russia, so he too knows what it's like to move away from home, and I suppose we just go together well. We're both pretty level-headed, good-natured (again, when he wants to be) and don't hesitate to be honest with eachother.

For example at this moment, he walks out from my bathroom looking ten times more attractive than I do, and I make no hesitation in scowling right at him. I think I failed to mention that I spent hours getting ready and attempting to tame my hair, while he swarmed in five minutes ago dressed to spend hours playing X-box. I never imagined he could pull off traditional Chinese garments so well.

Yes, my mother insisted on the telephone that I wear one of my more traditional outfits for this meeting. I suppose it is slightly more presentable to a princess than any of my other clothes seeing as my mother bought them should this occasion spring up one day. It's fortunate I happened to have two of them; I'm wearing the deep maroon while I've leant Kai the midnight blue. Of course, I'm not going to force him to wear the strange headdress that comes with it because that would just be cruel.

'I think you're damn lucky,' he comments on my situation, while casually fixing his hair in front of my mirror. 'I'd give anything to get away from here'.

'Honestly?' I can't quite contain my surprise. 'Wouldn't you miss school or anything?'

He snorts, 'That hell-hole?' okay, so I suppose we don't quite share the same opinion on that matter. I can't understand why though, it's a great school!

Still in discussion, we both decide to go downstairs and wait patiently in the reception room. I'm really glad Kai's here, now I think about it; I think my nerves would be killing me if he wasn't sitting beside me, in the same outfit as me no less. It always helps when you're not the only one looking a little ridiculous…and I should probably stop insulting my family's culture. Besides, Kai doesn't look ridiculous in the slightest; he looks cool and collected like he always does, as though he's just stopping off here to meet the princess because he happened to have some spare time. Ironically, that is exactly what happened, except he had no idea what he was in for. He's probably wishing he just stayed put in his grandfather's mansion but there's no way I'm letting him leave now even if he did want to.

My thoughts are interrupted when a car engine is heard from the drive. Suddenly my nerves have all reappeared and even Kai opens his eyes and looks slightly uneasy. My foster mother charges into the room to make sure we haven't decided to spite her and run away. I give her an indifferent look and she leaves to open the door. In the past couple of years the relationship between me and her has been a little…strained.

The two of us rise and slowly make our way out into the hall as the butler opens the door to greet our guest. She's standing a little further back, straightening her skirt and Kai and I are in the doorway, feeling slightly awkward.

The door opens and a young man enters, standing opposite our butler who's holding the door. He announces 'The princess, Arika' and in steps the girl who's soon to be the most important woman of the country. I notice she's very tall, probably taller than me. Even if she hadn't been announced to me I'd never have doubted she was of royalty. She takes a couple of steps into the atrium and it looks like she's floating. It may be because her feet are not visible but that doesn't deter from the elegance.

I'm impressed at my butler, who seems to know exactly what to say. 'The house of Ishiyama is honoured by your presence'.

My foster mother steps forward and bows before the princess, who smiles warmly at her before shaking her hand. 'It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance,' the princess greets her, before turning her attention towards me and Kai, who are still hovering like flies in the doorway to the reception room.

Fortunately, my foster mother takes the wheel. 'I am Ishiyama, Harumi, and this is Kon, Rei and our dearest family friend, Hiwatari, Kai'. She smiles warmly at us, but I almost have to fight the urge to laugh. Since when has Kai been a family friend, or dear for that matter?

We stand back and allow the princess to be led further into the house by Harumi. I was right; she is taller than me, and Kai aswell. As she passes us I find myself slightly dumbstruck. She smiles warmly at the two of us, but Kai's too busy focussing on a fascinating spot on the marble floor to notice. After her we trail our inept selves into the reception room and I sit rather stiffly on the chez longue. A girl with striking pink hair who looks slightly older than the princess Arika has walked in behind us and sits beside the princess in another chair, after catching my eye and winking. I smile awkwardly in return and follow Kai's example of looking elsewhere.

My foster mother makes pleasant conversation before getting down to business. 'I assure you that Rei would be honoured to be given a position at the Queen's court, my lady'.

She beams at me as she answers 'I'm very glad of that. We are very short of assistance as of late, and I in particular am severely lacking in waiting ladies, which is unfit for a girl who's soon to take the crown. Mao here…'

She trails off but I've stopped listening. Harumi flitters her eyes in my direction every two seconds or so and gulps, though she's trying to listen to what princess Arika is saying. My eyes widen, but when I look sideways at Kai he looks as though he's picked up on nothing. Maybe I got the wrong idea?

'…and I would naturally consider it a great honour to be presented with someone so fine as Rei to work by my side…'

I'm thinking that perhaps I over reacted slightly. With a small sigh of relief, I unintentionally sit back a little further and the headdress makes a strange noise. Nobody seems to notice though, except for Harumi, who's still on edge and the small sound visibly startles her. The pink-haired girl smirks and looks as though she's trying not to laugh, but the princess is still talking, and it seems only Kai is listening…then again, Kai's pointed stare would mean anything. Not that it looks as though the princess minds, because she's now smiling back at him with a thoughtful expression on her face.

'Tell me, Kai,' I am impressed she remembered his name, 'would you too be interested in taking an available place at court? We have many unoccupied rooms to my recollection, and along with your _friend_ you would be most…welcome'. I'm not sure why she stressed the word 'friend' but at that moment I don't care because suddenly an opportunity is arising. It's strange because I could have sworn those at court needed to have a connection to the monarchy in some way. Then again, Kai's grandfather's so rich I wouldn't be surprised if he had Tsar ancestry. I quickly look at Kai with a hopeful expression, to of course find him looking completely indifferent. That pondering look informs me that he'll have an answer sooner of later, and Arika seems to have realised that too, for she goes back to looking at me after another warm smile in Kai's direction.

'Rei, if all goes well I hope to expect you at court tomorrow'. I open my mouth to say something, but she cuts me off. 'I will send for the car, with Mao to collect you from here'. She indicates at the pink-haired girl who winks again.

I nod in understanding and respond 'of course, my lady. I will accompany Mao to your court tomorrow' with a small bow of the head.

She looks best pleased at my response, 'I would consider myself privileged to have the two of you-' her eyes flash towards Kai and back to me, '-at the palace with me. There is much activity and many fascinating people. I'm sure Kai would much enjoy living as a man of the court. And Rei, of course you will be with me but I trust you will adapt remarkably easily and I know you will work admirably with my other ladies'.

She didn't just…Oh my lord I think she did. Seriously? _Seriously_? I don't believe this. What a horrible misconstruction.

Oh God, I was right. The princess has mistaken me for a girl.

My eyes flash across the room. Harumi keeps opening her mouth and closing it again, completely unsure of what to do. Mao is just smiling pleasantly. The butler is standing in the corner of the room looking completely perplexed and Kai, well Kai's lip is twitching and it looks as though he's having difficulty keeping it under control. Figures the one time Kai actually has the urge to laugh and it's at my expense and in the presence of a princess.

It looks as though everybody's opted to ignore the situation presented before us as though it was never said. I must say I don't know if I like this method of ignorance, and it sure as hell can't go on for much longer…can it?

oOo

Apparently, it can. After about an hours-worth of conversation, the princess Arika has finally made her departure, taking her doorman and pink girl with her. I didn't listen to much else that was said given that I was left in a bit of a haze. Princess Arika arrived at my house believing that I'm a girl, and she departed believing that I'm a girl. Not once during the discussion did somebody think to point out the simple mistake. I'm now thinking that perhaps I should have been the one to do it, but I was rendered speechless at the stony glare I received from my dearest foster mother before the thought of protesting had even rendered in my brain. She's quick, that woman is.

So presently the two of us (me and Kai, not me and my foster mother) are taking a walk having changed back into regular clothes. I've been trying to get a proper response out of him for the past five minutes and though he's been putting up a decent fight I'm sure to break his seal in a few more tries.

'Kai, not two hours ago you said you'd give anything to get away from here. Well now you've been presented with your chance, why are you so indecisive?' he stays silent and deliberately avoids my eye. He's only doing that because he knows I'm right. He has absolutely no reason to stay, especially now that I'm leaving.

'Come on,' I swiftly move to block his way and stand in front of him. He's got no choice but to look me in the face now. 'Without me school would be an even bigger nightmare for you and you know it.' I'm taking a gamble here by showing a self-confidant side which doesn't usually escape from me. 'Besides, now's your chance to be rid of Voltaire, maybe for the rest of your life'.

He looks down at me and raises an amused eyebrow. At that moment, I realise I've got him. Perhaps it was a little too easy, but I've got a feeling Kai wanted to go with me from the start. Besides, the princess seemed to take a liking to him.

The corner of his mouth twitches and pulls back into a one-sided smirk. He sighs and says 'I'd sooner be anywhere else than here, even if that means taking the opportunity to follow you to some court'.

I relax and little and beam at him, getting a roll of the eyes and an actual smile in response, which is such a rare thing to see on Kai I feel the need to take a picture should I never see it again. My happiness clearly amuses him because he chuckles somewhat fondly; making me laugh with joy at how fortunate I am to have a friend who despises his current life so much.

oOo

'Woah Rei, you're leaving _tomorrow?_'

'To work in the _palace_?'

'For the _princess?_'

Six wide eyes and three dumb-struck faces stare up at me from where Takao, Max and Hiromi sit on the wooden floor of Takao's dojo. I'm standing before them and Kai's leant up against the wall. The three of them are looking at me as though I've been officially proclaimed a God.

'Not just me,' I remind, turning in the direction of the enigma behind me. 'Kai's decided to go with me'.

'No way!' Takao and Max cry out simultaneously.

'Oh you're _so_ lucky!' Hiromi whines.

Takao, Max and Hiromi; three of my closest friends who I'll be sure to miss greatly. Thinking about it, I'm not sure how I'll cope with being away from them for god knows how long. I met them through Kai, though I'm not sure how on earth he knew them, or why he became friends with them. Looking at the relationships between them, Takao and Kai in particular, it seems rather one-sided. I suppose he prefers them to the conceited, affluent students we know from our school. They go to the local public school, so I suppose Kai appreciated the change of scene; he hates our school and the people who reside in it with a passion.

'But dude, why didn't you tell us about this?' Takao presses.

I shrug 'I didn't know until a few hours ago, when the princess invited herself over and-'

'She was at your _house_?' Hiromi squeaks. Kai rolls his eyes at her shrill voice, but I just chuckle at the awe I'm receiving.

'This is so great!' Max gushes 'A friend of mine is going to work for the princess! Say,' he looks thoughtful, 'what are you going to be working as exactly, Rei?'

'Oh, erm…' that question was inevitable, I suppose. Oh dear, I don't really know how to explain this bizarre situation. I hear Kai clear his throat, which doesn't mean he's about to speak it simply means he's trying to hide laughter. These three rarely see Kai smirk, much less laugh. 'Well, as it stands there's been a small…mix up'.

They look like they're waiting for me to continue, so I assume that wasn't a suitable way to finish the sentence.

'The princess made a mistake,' Kai gives his input, a smirk so wide on his face I fear it might crack. I scowl at him but that doesn't do much to help the situation.

They're still looking expectantly at me, and I imagine they must be getting rather impatient. Half surprised that none of them have said anything yet, I sigh 'See, when princess Arika visited us earlier today, she made an…incorrect assumption. It turns out the help needed within the court was mainly with the princess' ladies in waiting…'

'_Well_?' Ah, there's the impatient outburst, from Takao and Hiromi concurrently. I think Max may have figured out what I'm about to say though, because he's looking extremely perplexed.

I sigh, yet again. 'The princess Arika mistook me for a girl and has hired me as a lady in waiting,' I rapidly blurt out, instantly turning red with frustration and shame. I hastily add 'But I plan to correct this mistake as soon as I figure out-'

'Oh but you can't!' Hiromi's looking at me as though I've just threatened to bomb the Kiyomizu-dera. 'Arika is the princess, one of the most powerful girls in the country. If she says you're female, you're female, Rei'.

'But that's ridiculous!' I exclaim at the absurdity of what Hiromi's just told me. Surely an understanding can be reached somehow?

'Yeah, Hiromi,' Takao agrees with me. 'Don't you think that's a little too extreme?'

Unfortunately for us, Kai has decided to take Hiromi's side. 'Correcting the princess could lead to a lot of trouble, no matter how pleasant she appeared to be. She'll only feel humiliated for making a mistake and some sort of punishment will likely be the result. Plus, we'll both be sent back home'.

I sigh. What he's saying is the truth. This circumstance is looking very dodgy but no matter how grave it becomes, being sent back to Harumi for the remaining three years I have left in school would possibly be even worse. Either way, I am well kept and live a life of luxury, in a lifestyle I am completely uncomfortable with and don't particularly like. It's a lose-lose situation, perfectly disguised in a deceiving sheet of gold.

'I suppose there wouldn't be too much acting involved,' I speak with defeat evident in my voice. 'I wasn't pretending to be a girl before, so there won't be a different face I need to wear…only different clothes'.

Hiromi smiles, 'That's the way to look at it! Besides, it doesn't look as though you have much choice in the matter'.

There's a small silence, followed by laughter. I raise my eyebrow and look down at the culprit, who just so happens to be Takao. 'Rei's gonna be a lady in waiting!'

Oh, fantastic. Now they're all laughing. Even Kai has managed to chuckle in a good-natured fashion, though I know he wants to roar with laughter on the inside. I'm so glad my situation amuses them, because I'm far from laughing. I can only roll my eyes.

'Come on,' Hiromi finally breaks the silence, standing up and wiping her eyes. 'It's getting late, I should start cooking'.

Max and Takao share a terrified look, before Takao hastily stands (almost falling over in the process) and calls after her 'er, Hiromi, perhaps we should eat out instead! We don't want Rei to get food poisoning before he has to go to the palace tomorrow!'

Max winks at me and I chuckle. I've never tasted Hiromi's cooking but perhaps now's not a good time to try. She storms back out, looking slightly agitated, throws Takao a glare and then smiles pleasantly again. The girl can go through more mood swings in three minutes than I usually do in a week. 'Alright, we'll go somewhere downtown then'.

I'm beginning to look forward to having a nice meal downtown, but Kai is quick to put an end to my joy. 'We should be going. The two of us have to be up early tomorrow, especially me because I have to walk to Rei's in the morning'.

I sigh with disappointment 'He's right. I'm sorry guys, we can't go downtown with you tonight'.

'Er, wh-when will we next see you?' Max asked with uncertainty. That's a very good question and one I'm unable to answer. I look towards Kai, who just shrugs and looks indifferent.

I turn back to Max, 'I have no idea'.

'Oh,' he nods awkwardly. 'Um, okay. Well, I guess I should wish you good luck, then…'

Perhaps fortunately, Takao's not so awkward about his goodbye. He practically tackles me to the ground. Hiromi's soon to follow and I feel my head may explode with the force of her arms around my neck. Despite this, I hug her back, which is more than Kai managed when her gesture left him rather dumbstruck. He's regained his composure, however, now that Takao looks as though he's about to attempt to leap on his shoulders. Kai casually steps to the side as Takao flies past him, and grabs his hand to shake firmly as Takao looks baffled as though he's wondering what just happened. I chuckle and pat Max on the shoulder, before we have finally said our goodbyes.

'Good luck! We'll be thinking of you tomorrow!'

'Thanks, Hiromi!'

'Be sure to call us!'

'I'll…try.'

'It won't be the same without you!'

'We know' Kai calls back to them, a smirk on his face. I can tell he's quite glad to be having a change in his life. He won't admit it, but I was right in forcing him to accompany me. I'm glad that he's glad; he may be a genuinely nicer person once presented with the opportunity to start again…or pigs might fly, but science is progressing quickly these days.

Waving a final goodbye to our friends, I walk beside Kai through the gate and bid a silent farewell. God knows when I'll see them again, but it hopefully won't be for a while; I am already enjoying the prospect of being away from the restless Harumi Ishiyama household. I may be arriving to the Queen's court as a female, but perhaps it won't be so bad after all. Who knows what sort of opportunities I could be faced with once I get there. I suppose I'll be finding out soon enough.

We stroll in a calm silence, making little haste because there's nowhere we have to be right now. Barely visible beneath the star-filled sky, we make our way home in the dark; the night before a brand new day.

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_(A/N): _So this is a little taste of this story for now; I'll write the next chapter…when I get round to it :P No making promises for me…

Hey, if fics exist where people mistake Yuriy for a girl, and fics exist where Kai _is_ a girl, I don't see the harm in this :D I'd sooner mistake Rei for a girl than Yuriy any day! Oh, and I should point out that this story will have no mpreg's in it...at all. I won't have a pregnant Rei, whether or not he's pretending to be a girl.

Yes, princess Arika has a little thing for Kai. No, this is not and never will be a KaiArika fic. It's a KaiRei forever! Catch the chemistry? XD

So a little background info is needed. As said in the story, Rei has a streak of royalty in his blood, but I was too lazy to explain how, so let's just say it's really complicated. Yes, this means Rei is part Japanese, but only a small part. When I referred to the village in China where Rei was brought up, it's not the village you imagine. This village, owned by the Kon family, is beautiful and rich in it's own resources. Yet, it's still isolated in the mountains and hardly prosperous, so Rei's mother saw fit to send him to Japan when he turned twelve.

Now, background info on Kai. His parents died when he was really young and he was sent to the abbey in Moscow, which was an orphanage. When he was about seven his rich grandfather, Voltaire, finally found him and naturally took him in. A few years later Voltaire moved to Japan, taking Kai with him. However, Voltaire was never a particularly caring man and Kai doesn't like him one bit.

Okay so, the foster mother, Harumi doesn't come into the story again. You certainly don't need to remember her name; I wasn't even going to give her one initially. Besides, there's more OCs to be introduced in the next two chapters, and you _will_ need to know them…don't worry though, it won't be too bad! Heheh, don't wanna put people off this now…

Takao, Max and Hiromi are referred to later on in the story, but only make an appearance in one chapter…and, er, that was it. But soon enough the other characters will come into the story.

Oh, and the Kiyomizu-dera Hiromi looked at Rei as though he were threatening to bomb is a Buddhist temple in Kyoto, in case anyone's interested…

So, I really need to shorten my A/N's...please send some reviews my way! Anything encouraging is welcome, flames certainly are not. Anonymous reviews are allowed so nobody's got an excuse :D Believe me, the story will get so much better than this!


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